We demonstrate a method for maintaining the maximum signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the signal obtained from the self-mixing sensor based on a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). It was found that the locus of the maximum SNR in the current-temperature space can be well approximated by a simple analytical model related to the temperature behavior of the VCSEL threshold current. The o...

Depth profile analysis by high-resolution secondary ion mass spectrometry ~SIMS! can accurately determine C and Si concentrations within monolithic reflectors of vertical cavity surface-emitting lasers ~VCSELs!. These SIMS depth profiles are quantified to atomic concentrations using relative sensitivity factors and calibration standards, and are correlated to the laser characteristics. We compa...

Previously reported simulations have suggested that depositing thin layers of metal over the surface of a single-mode, etched air hole photonic crystal (PhC) vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) could potentially improve the laser's side-mode suppression ratio by introducing additional losses to the higher-order modes. This work demonstrates the concept by presenting the results of a ...

A Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser (VCSEL) driver in 65nm CMOS selectively-enables parallel low-power CMOS drivers to shape the output current waveforms and compensate VCSEL nonlinearities. The CMOS waveform-shaping drivers are AC-coupled allowing them to operate from a 1-V supply to save power, while parallel low-frequency paths provide programmable DC biasing from a 3-V supply. The meas...

A 980 nm bottom-emitting vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) with a p-contact diameter is reported to achieve high power and good beam quality. A numerical simulation is conducted on the current spreading in a VCSEL with oxidation between the active region and the p-type distributed Bragg reflector. It is found that, for a particular oxide aperture diameter, somewhat homogeneous curr...

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) have been widely used in consumer electronics, light detection and ranging, optical interconnects, atomic sensors, so on. In this paper, a VCSEL with the surface metastructure like one-dimensional high-contrast grating (HCG), based on HCG-DBR vertical cavity, was first designed fabricated. The polarization characteristic of HCG-VCSEL were experim...

We have designed and fabricated a compact array-based optical engine for transmitting data at 10 Gb/s. The device consists of a 4-channel ASIC driving a VCSEL (Vertical Cavity Surface Emitting Laser) array in an optical package. The ASIC is designed using only core transistors in a 65 nm CMOS process to enhance the radiation-hardness. The ASIC contains an 8-bit DAC to control the bias and modul...

We discuss the polarization-resolved intensity noise characteristics of a transverse single-mode vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). Measurements by a sensitivity-enhanced lock-in amplifier detection scheme yield only an imperfect anticorrelation between the strong and the weak orthogonally polarized fundamental modes. Yet the total emission shows amplitude squeezing of 0.4 dB below...

A vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) driver design that utilizes a novel push-pull circuit topology is described. The VCSEL driver design can provide both a current pushing and a current pulling mechanism and therefore is capable of producing symmetric rise and fall times. The design was implemented in a 0.18-microm foundry n-well complementary metal-oxide semiconductor technology a...

We present experimental demonstrations of in-building impulse radio (IR) ultra-wideband (UWB) link consisting of 100 m multi mode fiber (MMF) and 4 m wireless transmission at a record 4 Gbps, and a record 8 m wireless transmission at 2.5 Gbps. A directly modulated vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) was used for the generation of the optical signal. 8 m at 2.5 Gbps corresponds to a b...